Trudeau needs one humdinger of an apology to get out of this

The word slipping through from Ottawa is that the prime minister is giving serious thought to an act of contrition, in hopes of ending the damage being done to Liberal re-election hopes by the crisis in the capital.

After initially appearing determined to tough things out in the wake of Jody Wilson-Raybould’s damning testimony to the justice committee, he went to ground once Jane Philpott’s resignation added several levels of magnitude to the potential for disaster. He has reportedly been taking advice from Canada’s ambassador to Washington, presumably in the belief anyone accustomed to a close-up view of Donald Trump must know a catastrophe when he sees one.

A good, solid apology may be in the cards, but the prime minister might want to give it some thought before he plunges ahead. He has shown himself to put great store in public declarations of regret, having already delivered several on behalf of the country. But that in itself is a reason for pause. If he’s going to get himself out of the hole he’s dug, it’s going to take one humdinger of a confession.

Trudeau has apologized at least four times as prime minister: for turning away Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazis; for refusing Indian steamship passengers seeking entry in 1914;for the hanging of six First Nations chiefs 150 years ago; and to residential schools survivors in Newfoundland and Labrador who weren’t included in an earlier apology by former prime minister Stephen Harper.